Classic
What? So What? Now What? retrospective template
Run a What, So what, Now what retrospective online for free: facts, meaning, next steps. Hidden cards, no sign-up.
Opens a new board with these columns, right in your browser.
What is the What? So What? Now What? retrospective?
What? So What? Now What? walks the team through three steps of reflection: what happened (facts), so what (why it matters), and now what (what we will do). It comes from experiential learning and Liberating Structures, and it stops teams from jumping to solutions before they agree on what actually happened.
The columns
- What happened
- So what
- Now what
When to use it
Use it after an event that people saw differently, such as a missed deadline, a tough demo or an incident, or when retros keep producing actions that do not address the real cause.
How to run it in Peel in 5 steps
- Create a board with the What · So what · Now what template and share the link.
- Write only in What happened first: facts and observations, no opinions. Reveal and group them.
- Then write in So what: what these facts mean for the team, the product or users.
- Finally write in Now what, vote, and discuss the top proposals.
- Turn the agreed Now-what cards into actions with owners and due dates.
Frequently asked questions
Should all three columns be written at once?
It works better in rounds: facts first, then meaning, then actions. Peel's hidden cards let you run each round without people seeing others' cards early.
Is this the Liberating Structures exercise?
Yes, it is adapted from the What, So What, Now What structure used in Liberating Structures.